(WAN/IFEX) – The following is a 14 September 2001 WAN press release: Bilbao, Spain, 14 September 2001 For immediate release Media Condemn Spanish, US Terrorism More than 200 publishers, journalists and free press advocates from 25 countries, meeting in Bilbao, Spain, on Friday, condemned “without reservation” the “outrageous and cowardly” attacks on the media by […]
(WAN/IFEX) – The following is a 14 September 2001 WAN press release:
Bilbao, Spain, 14 September 2001
For immediate release
Media Condemn Spanish, US Terrorism
More than 200 publishers, journalists and free press advocates from 25 countries, meeting in Bilbao, Spain, on Friday, condemned “without reservation” the “outrageous and cowardly” attacks on the media by Basque terrorists.
In a resolution, they stated that the murders of press executives and the bombing of media enterprises in Spain were the work of terrorists pursuing the same “fanatical logic” as the terrorists who wrought mass destruction in the United States on Tuesday.
“The catastrophe in the United States is evidently perpetrated on quite another scale than the regular acts of terrorist murder and destruction in Spain,” said the closing resolution of the Conference on Terrorism Against the Media.
“The roots of this violence and the motives of the killers are, however, essentially the same and follow a similar fanatical logic: to pursue political ends not by debate and the free flow of information and ideas, but by terrorising and eliminating the people, institutions, and guarantors of democratic society,” it cautioned.
In a message to the conference, the President of the European Parliament, Nicole Fontaine, said: “The Parliament, and myself, consider the fight against terrorism in Spain a priority of the European Union because terrorism denies the fundamental rights and the democratic principles on which our Union is founded.”
She said that attacking freedom of the press was a priority for the terrorists because of its fundamental role in developing democracy.
The conference had been planned before the fatal US attacks to focus on terrorism against the media, particularly in Spain’s Basque country, where the terrorist organisation ETA has made media and their staff a priority target for violent attacks. The resolution concluded: “In these tragic days of new and unprecedented terror against humanity, it is more urgent than ever to stand resolute against, and to condemn, every single violation of the fundamental, democratic principles which govern the civilised world.”
In addition to focusing on the escalation of attacks against the media in the Basque region, the conference also examined violence against the media in Algeria, Colombia, Indonesia, Israel and Northern Ireland.
The resolution expressed “total solidarity with journalists and media in the Basque country in their dangerous and courageous work” and called on all political parties to denounce all forms of violence against the media.
The conference was organised by the World Association of Newspapers, the World Editors Forum, the Spanish Newspaper Publishers Association (aede), supported by the Federation of Spanish Press Associations (FAPE). It was hosted by Grupo Correo.
The conference follows a WAN and World Editors Forum mission to the Basque Country that found an alarming increase in threats, intimidation, and attacks on media staff made by the radical Basque nationalist terror organisation, ETA and its supporters. The attacks have made it impossible for journalists there to live normal lives, both privately and professionally. The mission report, and summaries of conference proceedings, are available on the WAN web site at www.wan-press.org/ce/media.conference/index.html.
The full resolution, approved by more than 200 conference participants, reads:
“Freedom of expression and the right to be informed are basic conditions for any society to be defined as democratic. Any threat to these fundamental rights seriously damages society and endangers democracy.
“Media professionals working to maintain these principles have the right to carry out their duties safely and freely without the risk of being threatened, harassed or attacked.
“In the Basque region of Spain, the terrorist organisation ETA has made media and their staff a priority target for violent attacks. The very same media that made possible the transformation from dictatorship to democracy are now intimidated for carrying out their democratic obligations.
“In its latest campaign of violence, ETA has killed three media professionals and attempted to murder several others. ETA is also responsible for numerous attacks on media offices and threats intended to intimidate journalists.
“Free and independent media are a fundamental condition of any democracy, including of course Spain and its Basque region. Today, terrorists are attempting to undermine or even destroy the media in the hope that they can influence news and information, and pursue their political agenda through terror and intimidation.
“In order to confront this challenge, the World Association of Newspapers, the World Editors Forum, the Spanish Newspaper Publishers Association (aede), together with the Federation of Spanish Press Associations (FAPE) have organised this conference on Terrorism Against the Media, taking place in Bilbao 14 September 2001, and gathering more than 200 media professionals from 24 countries.
“In a resolution, the Conference condemns without reservation the outrageous and cowardly attacks on the free press and calls on the police and security forces to do everything possible to apprehend the perpetrators.
“On behalf of the world newspaper community, we the participants also express our total solidarity with journalists and media in the Basque country in their dangerous and courageous work and their refusal to be held hostage to threats and violence.
“The participants of the Conference strongly encourage all democratic political parties in the Basque country to denounce without reserve all forms of violence and intimidation of the press and to refrain from any speech or writing that incites hatred or violence against media.
“As this Bilbao conference takes place, the world is mourning the victims of the most terrible acts of mass terrorism we have ever seen. The catastrophe in the United States is evidently perpetrated on quite another scale than the regular acts of terrorist murder and destruction in Spain.
“The roots of this violence and the motives of the killers are, however, essentially the same and follow a similar fanatical logic: to pursue political ends not by debate and the free flow of information and ideas, but by terrorising and eliminating the people, institutions and guarantors of democratic society.
“In these tragic days of new and unprecedented terror against humanity, it is more urgent than ever to stand resolute against, and to condemn, every single violation of the fundamental, democratic principles which govern the civilised world. That is the aim of this conference.”
The Paris-based WAN, the global organisation for the newspaper industry, defends and promotes press freedom world-wide. It represents 17,000 newspapers; its membership includes 67 national newspaper associations, individual newspaper executives in 93 countries, 17 news agencies and eight regional and world-wide press groups.
The WEF is the division of WAN that represents senior news executives.
